FIRST HOUR
Howzat (Sherbet)
(1976)... hugely successful band from Australia with their one and only hit here
Tainted Love (Gloria Jones)
(1964) ... classic Northern soul floor filler - the original '60s version of the song that went on to be a #.1 for Soft Cell in the early '80s. Legend has it that Marc Almond and Dave Ball first heard Gloria's record on a jukebox when they were students at Leeds Polytechnic. Later, after teaming up as Soft Cell, they set about re-working Tainted Love as an electro-pop classic for a new generation
Tunnel Of Love (Fun Boy Three)
... second single from Waiting, the second and final album by former Specials Terry Hall, Neville Staple and Lynval Golding. Underpinned by its strident tango rhythm, Tunnel of Love peaked at # 10 in the first of today's featured years. In their all-too-brief two-year lifespan as a trio, the Fun Boys clocked up six Top 20 hits, including three which made the Top 10
'60s hits by the same writer
... Graham Gouldman, prolific supplier of hit songs for other artists, before stepping into the spotlight in his own right as one of 10cc *
Look Through Any Window (The Hollies) *
(1965)... notable for its distinctive 12-string guitar riff, soaring harmonies and Bobby Elliott’s explosive drumming [W]
No Milk Today (Herman's Hermits) *
(1966) ... one of the hallmarks of a great writer is the ability to observe and absorb the seemingly trivial, but significant details of everyday life Graham Gouldman had seen a 'no milk today' note outside a friend's house which, as his father observed, might have been for any number of reasons. In the lyrics, the household needs less milk because someone has just moved out. The note asking the milkman not to leave the usual bottle, while appearing completely unremarkable to an outsider ('how could they know just what this message means'), has a deeper significance. The writer - or whoever is singing - expresses sadness at the break-up of a relationship ('the end of all my dreams'). [W]
* The present day line-ups of the bands mentioned have announced live dates in 2022, including, in our region:
10cc: Bridgewater Hall, Manchester, Monday 28 March
The Hollies - 60th anniversary tour: The Lowry, Salford Quays, Tuesday 14 June
Herman's Hermits played Stockport Plaza on 27 February, with a far reaching schedule of concerts continuing throughout the rest of 2022
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I'll Be Around (Detroit Spinners)
(1972) ... having started out as a B-side reached # 3 on the Billboard Hot 100 and was No.1 for five weeks on the R&B chart with sales of over a million. It was also the start of a very fruitful working relationship with producer Thom Bell. A string of hits would follow throughout the '70s, including the likes of Could It Be I'm Falling In Love and Ghetto Child which also did well in the UK. I'll Be Around deserved to be on that list as well, but sadly never made the breakthrough this side of the pond
Newsround Tameside: 39 years ago ~ 1983
Speak Like A Child (The Style Council)
... Paul Weller made a swift return after The Jam split up at the end of '82. Speak Like A Child was a clear statement of intent ~ new band,new direction while maintaining his seamless run of chart hits. Style Council's first of several Top 10-ers featured Tracie Young, newly signed to Weller's Respond Records label on backing vocals.
Na Na Hey Hey Kiss Him Goodbye (Bananarama)
... instantly catchy chorus worked just as well - in fact, even better - for Bananarama as it had done for one hit wonder group Steam back in 1970. Chart-wise the new version ( highest position # 5) managed to overtake the original (# 9)
Fields of Fire (400 Miles) (Big Country)
... Scottish band who struck gold with their melodic, anthemic rock, infused with traditional Celtic folk music, using guitars to re-create the sounds of bagpipes and fiddles. The opening riff was clearly inspired, whether intentionally or not, by the famous film tune The Guns of Navarone
She Means Nothing To Me (Phil Everly & Cliff Richard)
... one of many one-off duets for Cliff during his long career and among the most successful chart-wise, rekindling the sound and feel of late '50s and early '60s Everly Brothers hits.. The song features its writer John David on lead guitar, Mark Knopfler of Dire Straits (rhythm guitar), top session man Pete Wingfield (electric piano) with Stuart Colman, the producer ** playing bass and second lead.( ** best known for the string of hits he produced for Shakin' Stevens)
Sign of The Times (The Belle Stars)
... Top 3 hit for the girl group whose previous chart successes were cover versions of old songs Iko Iko ( # 35) and The Clapping Song (# 11)
Never Gonna Give You Up (Musical Youth)
... after debuting with the # 1 Pass The Dutchie towards the end of 1982, this was to be their only other Top 10-er
Sweet Dreams (Are Made Of This) (Eurythmics)
... worldwide million seller for Dave Stewart and Annie Lennox, previously of The Tourists. Their change of direction as a duo had taken a couple of years to be fully formed but from this point onwards, the success of Eurythmics would be at an entirely different level
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SECOND HOUR
Sunshine Day (Osibisa)
(1976) ... band from Ghana and Nigeria bringing a blast of warmth and good cheer to the UK in the depths of winter
Pandora's Box (Procol Harum)
(1975)... first of two as a tribute to Gary Brooker, the band's singer and front man who died a couple of weeks ago, aged 76. A Whiter Shade of Pale has gone down in history as one of THE classic pop songs of the past 60 years. Although it is without question their best known track, they had other occasional hits from the late '60s through to the mid '70s. Pandora's Box (1975, # 16) would be their final chart appearance
I'll Never Find Another You (The Seekers)
... chart-topping UK debut for the Australian vocal group which they quickly followed up with A World Of Own (# 3) before returning with another No 1 a few months later, The Carnival Is Over
Absolutely Lyricless ~ the instrumental break
... from pipes to percussion ...
Sailor's Hornpipe (Mike Oldfield)
(1973) ... short but sweet final 'track' *** on his ground-breaking album Tubular Bells ~ a foretaste of his instrumental hit singles which would follow over the next few years ~ In Dulci Jubilo (the Christmas one!), Portsmouth and his re-working of the Blue Peter theme (*** bear in mind, the entire album is a continuous composition, with one section flowing seamlessly into the next)
Bongo Rock (Incredible Bongo Band)
(1973) ... does exactly what it says in the title ~ much played on the radio, often as a backing track for the presenter to talk over (!) but missed out completely on a chart placing
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Harvest For The World (The Christians)
(1988) ... their highest placed chart hit (# 8) was a cover of the much played Isley Brothers' song from the mid '70s and proved just as popular
Conquistador (Procol Harum)
(1967)... original studio recording from the band's self-titled debut album - an epic live version featuring the Edmonton Symphony Orchestra was released as a single in '72 and proved much more successful in other countries. (New Zealand # 3, Australia # 4, Canada # 7, Netherlands # 8, US # 16 - compared with a relatively lowly # 22 here)
Newsround pre-Tameside: 57 years ago ~ 1965
Girl Don't Come (Sandie Shaw)
... Top 3 single at the start of the year - by the time it ended Sandie had another four hits to her credit
It's Not Unusual (Tom Jones)
... TJ's first time on the chart and his first # 1 ~ originally written with Sandie Shaw in mind. Twenty two years later it was back in the Top 20 as a reissue (1987, # 17)
Golden Lights (Twinkle)
... follow up to Terry - a Top 5 hit for Twinkle - real name Lynn Ripley the previous year. Golden Lights stalled at # 21 but left a lasting impression on a certain Steven Morrissey of Salford, six years old at the time of its release. Fast forward 20 years, still professing to be a devoted Twinkle fan, Morrissey covered the song with The Smiths
We Gotta Get Out Of This Place (The Animals)
... Chas Chandler - who went on to manage Jimi Hendrix and Slade - plays the distinctive, instantly recognisable bass lead. Massively popular with US Armed Forces serving in Vietnam, We Gotta... came from the American husband and wife writing partnership, Barry Mann and Cynthia Weil
This Little Bird (Marianne Faithfull)
... her third hit in the Top 10, less than 12 months after debuting with As Tears Go By
Ticket To Ride (The Beatles)
....with John Lennon on lead vocal, the Fab Four's latest chart topper was soon to be heard in their new film Help! and on the album of the same name
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SHOW THEME:
Rhapsody In Blue (Rick Wakeman)
written by George Gershwin, arranged by Tony Visconti
from the album Rhapsodies (A&M Records, 1979)
[W]: Source: Wikipedia
Please bear in mind: it's a live show and so, occasionally I might need to change the running order, leave a song out, or play an unplanned extra song which will not be shown in this weekly music blog.
If you missed any of the show, you can catch up online after 15:00 on Sunday 06/03/2022:
